I set out at 5AM from Page, Arizona. It was about a 140 mile drive to Monument Valley, Utah. You gradually ascend from about 3700 feet to just over 5000 feet and experience about a 10 degree drop in temperature. I reached Monument valley about 8AM and it was a very nice 73 degrees. As you drive through lots of open high desert you know you are close when you get to the McDonald’s. Yep, there is a lot of nothing and then a McDonald’s seems to rise out of the desert floor like some urban mirage.
As you drive into the Valley you can see many of the terrain features that make the area famous, if not sacred. The Navajo Nation, including the Navajo controlled part of the Park is closed due to Covid. They are, however, still running tours out of the off-rez hotels. I went to Goulding Lodge and saw the 10 to 12 seat, open area pick-up truck with a canvas overhead tour vehicles loading up. The one that was loading only had 3 people. The operator wanted a $100.
“Where does the tour go?” I asked him.
“I’ll show you.” He answered as he opened up a map. Essentially, his tour made a big loop on the highway.
“Let me think on it.” I replied.
As he took off on the tour, I got in my car and followed. Sure enough, we drove down a highway marked “Scenic Highway” and he stopped at paved turn out marked “Scenic View.” I buzzed ahead in my car, pulled into the next one and looked up the thing I was looking at on the Internet. I figured it was a toss up on accuracy, the tour guide or Wikipedia. It took a little more than an hour.
The five photographs really don’t do the Valley justice. From a long way off they look like castles or fortresses. The wind and rain erosion makes shapes like human faces and animals, sort of like looking at a cloud and seeing a face or shape of animal; but in stone. After my self-guided tour, I set the navigation for Provo, Utah.
I went through Mexican Hat (yep, the rock looks like a man wearing a giant sombrero), crossed the San Juan River and stopped at Bluffington Fort. Now, this leg of the trip is 367 miles. A long way. Here is where I made the mistakes because I was getting tired.
As I was driving down the 70, there was a sign “Last Service for 107 Miles.” I have over a half a tank of gas, but figure I could gas up, go to the bathroom and get a cup of coffee. The place was a Pilot Truck Stop. You know what to expect at truck stops. As I pull off the freeway, the gas pumps are slightly backed up and the parking lot is nearly full. But, there is a parking lot around the back and it looks pretty empty. Besides, those places are huge on the inside. Not a problem. I actually slip into the gas line and get filled up without waiting. I pull around back and get a spot easily.
Then I walk inside. It’s actually a mini-truck stop on the inside. And, there are at least 200 people in the store. Several of the shelves are empty and men are stacking boxes of restock in the aisles. People are opening those and going through them. The boxes of restock make even less room in an already crowded place. There is a line, a long line, of people waiting and watching as hotdogs rotate on that roller cooker thing; there is a half-eaten corndog spinning in the corner as it begins to burn.
I waded through the crowd toward the restroom. It was so crowded and noisy, people were shouting to be heard. Like you would shout at bar with a loud band. No one is wearing a mask. I can feel the droplets of Covid (not really, but in my imagination I could). I exited the bathroom and head over toward the coffee. I only get a few feet when two ten year old boys begin fighting over what must be the last bag of M&Ms. The crowd jostles toward the sound and the coffee is blocked. Scarcity (107 miles to next service) and pent-up demand (A year on quarantine) have created a Walking Dead scenario in this truck stop. I new that at any moment they would begin to bite each other, and it would be full-on Walking Dead. I backtrack and fled through the rear entrance.
I jumped back up the highway. After a few miles, I saw a great sign. The speed limit was 80MPH. There I am, in the fast lane, going 83 and listening to Jazz. I was in the zone. So much so that I missed my turn off. Yikes, the next exit is 10 miles! I get back on track and arrive in Lehi, Utah in the late afternoon.
Next stop Jackson Hole Wyoming.
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